Searchlight Pictures has officially relinquished the rights to Magazine Dreams, a film starring Jonathan Majors, back to the filmmakers following the actor’s conviction for assault and harassment. The decision comes a week after his conviction, and Searchlight, the Walt Disney Studios speciality arm, will no longer be distributing the film, as confirmed by Variety.
The body-building drama Magazine Dreams starring Jonathan Majors, directed by Elijah Bynum, initially gained attention with a positive reception and a reported mid-seven-figure sale after its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. Majors’ compelling performance as amateur bodybuilder Killian Maddox contributed to the film’s success. However, his legal troubles, culminating in his March 25 arrest related to an incident with his ex-partner Grace Jabbari, cast a shadow over the Magazine Dreams‘s future. Searchlight removed Magazine Dreams from its release calendar in October, leaving the fate of the movie uncertain.
The conviction also led to significant professional consequences for Majors. Marvel Studios severed ties with him, removing him from his role as the villain Kang the Conqueror. Additionally, Lionsgate dropped Majors from the lead role in the Dennis Rodman film 48 Hours in Vegas, prompting the project to seek a new star and distributor. The film’s fate took a turn as Searchlight returned the rights to Magazine Dreams to the filmmakers, allowing them the freedom to explore other distribution options.
The move occurred weeks after his conviction, and his sentencing hearing is scheduled for February 6. Variety’s Owen Gleiberman likened Magazine Dreams to iconic films like The Wrestler and Taxi Driver, describing it as a work that creates a haunting character, with Majors delivering an exceptional performance. Co-starring Haley Bennett, Taylour Paige, Mike O’Hearn, Harrison Page, and Harriet Sansom Harris, Magazine Dreams had generated considerable awards buzz before Jonathan Majors’ legal troubles.
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Elijah Bynum, Magazine Dreams‘s writer and director, was lauded as a promising talent. Disney owned Searchlight had acquired the film with plans for a late-year awards season campaign, but Jonathan Majors’ arrest disrupted those plans. Despite the setback, the film currently holds an 84 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with reviewers praising Jonathan Majors’ portrayal of his character in Magazine Dreams. The Hollywood Reporter’s chief film critic, David Rooney, commended Majors and Bynum for making audiences empathize with the intimidating protagonist.
The situation marks another setback for Jonathan Majors, who, following a promising trajectory, now sees one of his completed projects abandoned by Disney owned Searchlight Pictures. As Magazine Dreams seeks a new home, its themes of violence and Jonathan Majors’ real-life legal troubles may present challenges in securing a release elsewhere in the industry.
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